Avoid Waiting At Red Lights When Driving

The team at MIT has created SignalGuru, an app that can help drivers avoid waiting in red lights. The app uses crowd sourced information about stoplight data and creates a bigger picture of the city’s traffic flow. In turn, it can help the driver calculate an optimal driving speed so he/she won’t need to come to a complete stop at the upcoming traffic light. This app generally suggests to slow down, rather than speed up. By not waiting around at a red light or constantly accelerating, SignalGuru reported that it helped drivers save 20 percent off their fuel consumption.

Because SignalGuru uses crowd sourced information, drivers would need to mount their smartphone on the car’s dashboard and have the app turned on. For the system to be effective and accurate, it relies on multiple drivers participating.